Buying your first house – what you learned

I should have taken a closer look at the leaky plumbing in the basement. I should have been real with myself and told the previous owners of my home they should take the piano out of the basement when they moved. Thanks, but no thanks.

I bought my first house six years ago, and while I suffered no serious pangs of buyer’s remorse, there are things I wish I’d done differently before I signed on the dotted line. I have a colleague who wishes she gave more thought to the resale value of her first house. Another friend tells a story about shelves loaded with plants next to a sliding glass door. Later, he found out the slider didn’t work and the wood was rotten. He wishes he tried the door before he bought the house.

What are your regrets and “things I wish I’d known” stories about buying your first house? The Times Union would like to hear about what you learned from buying your first house. What would you have done differently? What advice to you have for someone shopping for their first house?

Share your stories, and we’ll republish some of them in an upcoming Real Estate section.

Leigh Hornbeck

37 Responses

There have been a lot of people mentioning issues at the walk through that they were told would have been “taken care of” by the time the closing was over. It is normal for you to hold some $ back in Escrow with your attorney if you are not comfortable just taking someones word for it. Have your attorney right up something substantial to make sure the sellers do exactly what you want before you release their funds. And definitely put a time limit on when the issue needs to be resolved by. If not resolved timely…you keep the money. Don’t be shy about what you want. It is just as big of a deal for a seller to sell as it is for a buyer to buy.

I wish I hired a better home inspector. It wasn’t like I was trying to cheap out and get a cheap inspection. The guy really wasn’t very thorough. He noted the washer and dryer in the basement but didn’t even bother checking to see if they worked.

It turns out that neither appliance worked and I had to carry them up 2 flights of stairs and put them on the sidewalk to get rid of them.

Funny thing is… the washer and dryer were touted as an extra by the seller. Like they were doing me a favor by leaving them! HAHA! NOT.

Another thing I learned is to not believe a thing anyone from the code enforcement office says regarding a city owned building 3 feet away from my new home.

The city told me numerous times that they’d be selling the dilapitating, boarded up property. Then, after years of no one bidding on it in their numerous auctions, they refuse to even fix it up or board it up properly. This building is full of junk left by the previous owner a decade ago. The rain leaks in and creates mold and smell. It’s horrific! And the city turns a blind eye.

Here’s a troy record story almost 2 years ago about the property. Nothing has been done since except DPW taking 1 dumpster and 2 pick up truck loads of moldy garbage out of the building. It’s still not even close to being empty.

My first house we believed them when they said a brown spot on the ceiling was from a recent champagne blast. Needless to say, we found out later that it was from a leaky pipe.

My second house I should have asked where the drainage pipes around the perimeter of the property drained – oops they drained illegally into the sewer pipes and backed up into the cellar during large storms.

My third house, how did the house inspector miss that the garage sill was rotted all around the perimeter? That cost me $$$ and I’m still dealing with water issues.

The lesson I guess is that you should never underestimate the destructive power of water, or the seller’s incentive to hide serious issues.

Location: what will the dynamics of the neighborhood be in ten years; what is the flight pattern of planes off & on high winds; what is the water table & consistency of the soil; proximity to commericial land & dumping sites; level of care of neighboring properties

Age and maintenance of home: windows, roofing, heating, insulation, wiring, plumbing, foundation. Appliances are minor and cosmetic compared to the cost of fixing infrastructure. Water in the basement is a serious concern, fostering mold on walls & in french keys, which can bring about serious health issues & odors. Old homes may have more character, but they typically have practically no insulation & extremely costly to heat.

Your support: your home is the biggest investment aside from children. Don’t bargin hunt of skimp when hiring a lawyer & home inspector. And do have a real estate agent represent you. All these people are worth the investment for writing proper contracts & researching your purchase/investment.

Weigh your options: Handyman special vs. newer. If the updates & repairs have high price tags, look to see what newer homes are selling for and do the math. Some repairs can be done over time and make a less expensive home a wiser investment. Newer omes

My first house has been my only house… thus far. Was I prepared for what I walked into? Not in a million years. I had an inspection done prior to purchase and was quite pleased with the inspector. I literally followed him throughout the entire inspection, even onto the roof of a 2 1/2 story house.. he was thorough and wrote up a 5 year plan of action. I took it to heart and acted accordingly. Here is the issue that I have discovered though… in albany … on some streets… there are serious problems with effluent washing into basements b/c sewers take in both storm water and sewage… and it is NASTY!! I resolved the issue but at my cost… the city’s program wasn’t in existence at the time. When you purchase an older home, expect the unexpected b/c just about anything can and will go wrong. After my experience I kept telling my friends who were potential homeowners… DON’T DO IT!! It had little bearing on their decisions but homeownership can indeed be a nightmare… I hope those in the market never have bad experiences but that would be quite naive of me. In addition I must mention the mantra that my coworkers told me before purchasing a home.. there are 3 vitally important criteria: neighborhood, neighborhood, neighborhood… and they were correct. As has been mentioned by other commentors, check out the neighborhood at different times of day to see what happens… including at night. Good luck to all those in the market for their first…